Birthday Gift
by am95
Summary: It's Annabeth's birthday, and Percy's gone missing! What's happening? Set between LO and TL H. Rated T just to be safe. Shows the dangers you have to face to get the perfect gift for your girlfriend in the world of demigods!
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys… this is my first fan fiction, so please help! Any how, this is the summary:**

**It's Annabeth's birthday and Percy has gone missing! What's happening? Set between LO and LH.**

**(I don't own any of the characters! All are Rick Riordan's**)

_**Chapter 1**_

PERCY POV

Tring! Tring!

Percy Jackson groaned and rolled over to shut his alarm clock. Then he noticed the time: 6:00.

Groggy from his sleep, he couldn't understand why he had put such an early alarm, until he looked over at his half brother Tyson's bed. A gift wrapped package lay at the foot of the bed.

Damn!

How could he forget? It was Annabeth's birthday, the first since he-not he, _they_ had defeated the twisted Titan king Kronos, and had officially declared each other in a relationship.

Annabeth would _kill_ him!

Glancing cautiously at Tyson's snoring form, he tip-toed and quietly opened Tyson's gift. Then he groaned. Again.

There was no way on earth he could match Tyson's gift. It was a simple bronze square, but looking at it from different angles, he could see different pictures.

He, Tyson, Annabeth at the feet of Pan.

He, Tyson, Annabeth and Nico fighting at the battle of labyrinth.

He, Tyson, Grover getting the Golden Fleece.

He, Tyson, Annabeth, Grover at Mount Olympus.

…..

Suddenly he stiffened. Then he smiled. Because he now knew EXACTLY what to get her.

Quietly rearranging Tyson's gift to the way it was before, he opened the door of his cabin and got out. An hour later when Tyson would wake up, he would find a note attached to his bed to be given to Annabeth which read "I'll be back".

ANNABETH POV

Like Percy, Annabeth's day too started with a groan.

Not because of getting up early- she was perfectly used to it- but because of the extensive decoration in the Athena cabin.

She had considered her birthday to be a secret. So _of course_ the whole camp knew that it was her birthday today.

Sighing, she got up and dressed, brushed her hair (she had started giving more attention to her curls ever since she found out Percy loved them) and got out.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Screamed everyone the second she got out. Shaking her head and muttering, she grinned at her friends and hugged them. Even Chiron was present, though he soon excused himself.

She understood why this was happening. Ever since the Titan war, everyone had got closer, because they now knew the pain of loosing each other. So, they made the most of their days left together. Of course, being one of the main heroes if the battle only helped her popularity.

Even the Ares cabin had gifted her spear. The other cabins too gave her gifts, but above all, she was looking for her seaweed brain, boyfriend, Percy Jackson. Just then, she spotted Tyson, who wished her, and gave her the gift. Assuming Percy to be a few minutes late, she turned her attention to Tyson's gift and gasped. She got tears in her eyes, and when she thanked Tyson, he hugged her.

"Where's Percy?" she asked, hurriedly wiping her tears- Percy hated it when she cried. Without a word, Tyson handed her the note.

"I'll be back…" Annabeth frowned. She knew Percy remembered her birthday, so why would he disappear? It could mean only one thing: that Percy was going out of his way to get her a good gift. She sighed; seaweed brain would remain seaweed brain.

Little did she know, that to get the perfect gift, how much danger would he have to face!


	2. Chapter 2

_**All right! I'm back with the second chapter! Hope you enjoy!**_

_**(Disclaimer: All characters belong to Rick Riordan, a pretty good job he's been doing too!)**_

_**Chapter 2 **_

_Percy POV_:

Percy Jackson walked up to the doorman of the Empire State Building and said confidently "I need to go to the 600th floor." As an added incentive, he put down a drachma at the table.

"That's not money, boy," grunted the doorman, "and there's no 600th floor either."

Percy sighed, and said hurriedly, "Look, I have an appointment with Lady Athena and-"

"Aren't you Poseidon's boy?" interrupted the doorman quizzically.

"Yes I am, and now will you please let me go up?" He was growing desperate; the Gods didn't like to be late.

"You're _so_ dead, boy- so, _so_, dead!" the doorman chuckled, and finally allowed Percy to go.

The doorman's voice reverberated in Percy's head as he went up. On the way, he contemplated his actions. That morning, he had taken some food from his cabin before going out. He had then walked up to the barely glowing camp fire in the middle of the pavilion, and said for the first time in his life, "To Lady Athena, please. I know you don't like me, but for your daughter's sake, I'll be coming at 9:00 to Olympus to talk to you. Please, cousin."

Percy had added the last word to remind Athena that he too, was closely related to her. As he was not vaporized by the time he got to Olympus, he figured that Athena had listened to him and was going to talk to him.

The first thing Percy noticed when he got to Olympus was how much it had changed. The place was looking much more descriptive, the temples much bigger, and yet somehow there were more gardens and lakes than before. He smiled. The genius of Annabeth. Some distance away, he noticed some Cyclopes hurriedly putting blocks around a lake. Still more people were arguing over some sheet of paper. Far away, a huge bowl of smoke suddenly arose, as if there had been a blast.

As his eyes adjusted to the scene in front of him, he suddenly noticed a lady sitting on a park bench some distance away, looking at him. It was the same lady who had given him directions when he was at the Hoover dam. _The dam problem_. Stifling a grin, he went over to her and respectfully bowed before her.

"Lady Athena" he said.

"Percy Jackson," she nodded, "Come, walk with me."

As they walked, he noticed naiads and other beings roam about, laughing, or stopping to bow respectfully at Athena. One of them winked at Percy, and as he stared, she giggled and walked away. A little distance away, he could see Ares walking blearily to the throne room.

"Do Gods sleep?" he wondered, watching him. He felt curious, but did not ask aloud.

"No we don't," he heard Athena whisper in his mind, "but in our mortal form, we do have to sleep to see to the needs of our bodies. However, in our true forms, we don't have to keep up with it."

"Ah… of course Lady Athena," Percy replied, this time aloud.

Sighing, she started, "You know, of course, that I can easily vaporize you right now and forget all the trouble you are going to cause me."

A hell of a start, Percy thought, nodding.

"However, I have been watching how you are treating my daughter, and… as much as I hate to admit it, you have been a pretty good boyfriend to her, and so I suppose I can grant you this wish."

Great, thought Percy. "So, what I thought was-"

"I know your plan. However, there remains the problem of her father, who is a mortal, and-"

"My lady, he has already seen Olympus. When we rescued Lady Artemis and Annabeth from Atlas, he followed Artemis's chariot in an erm… plane."

A smile played with Athena's lips. "It seems you have thought all of this in great detail, son of Poseidon."

Percy shrugged, embarrassed, "Seems being with your daughter has rubbed off on me, my Lady."

"So it seems," she thought for a while, and smiled, "Well then, I can see of no reason why we can't do this for my daughter. I'll go and alert him. You can IM Annabeth and tell her to be present here by 8:00 evening."

"Thank you my lady!" Percy exclaimed. Inside, however, he had a feeling of growing uneasiness. Gods took nothing for free.

"In the mean time, I have some work for you," she continued.

Here goes, he thought, mentally face palming.

"You need to complete them by 8:00 evening, that is, by the time Annabeth arrives."

"And if I'm not able to complete them, my lady?"

He immediately wished he had not asked that, the Goddess's nostrils flared and she shouted, "Don't test me, Jackson! Just because you're a good boyfriend doesn't mean you are worthy to be with _my_ daughter!" Then she quieted down, and said, "There'll be three tasks, the first and the second tasks will give you clues about the third task. If you are able to complete all three tasks by 8:00, I'll consider you to be worthy of my daughter." She made a face at this, as if she found the idea very doubtful. "However, if you are not, then… I'll have no choice but to break your relationship."

Percy was aghast. He knew that the 'tasks' of Athena be very brainy, as she was the Goddess of wisdom. Then again, it would be dangerous, as she was Goddess of battle too. He almost walked away right then, but realized that the whole point of the challenge was not a birthday gift, but to see whether _he_ was capable or not. If he left now, he would degrade himself further in the eyes of Athena.

_Annabeth… Remember._ Gathering his courage, he squared himself, and looked at the Goddess straight in the eye.

"Tell me."


	3. Chapter 3

_**Now, I've been noticing that there have been very few reviews for my story, even though the numbers of views are encouraging! So guys please review, Ok? Takes only a few seconds!**_

_**On a lighter note, it's my birthday today! Yippee! Its party time!**_

_**Lets get on with the chapter now – the first task!**_

_**(Disclaimer: All Characters to Rick Riordan!)**_

_**Chapter-3 The First Task**_

"All right then, listen carefully," Athena warned, "Because I will say this only once."

Percy nodded to show that he was following.

"I want you to go to my temple; the one Annabeth has made, and get my book." She said clearly.

"I have to go and get your book." Percy repeated, puzzled.

"That's what I said." Now she was smirking.

Percy frowned. Not only the task seemed weird, but also the way she pronounced "my book", almost as if it were one word, "mybook". He shook himself. Must be the godly accent or something. If he had to get only the book… well, it was way too easy.

"So, are you ready?" the Goddess enquired.

He shrugged and nodded, "No time like now."

"Follow me then."

Percy followed her past Apollo's temple, which was blinding and had a huge dome at the top ("In reference to his big head", Annabeth had said), and Artemis's temple, which was smaller and shined with a silver light. Beside Artemis's temple, stood Athena's temple, and it was marked as such.

He had followed her till the doorway of her temple when he saw it. He stopped dead in his tracks.

A _labyrinth_. Her stupid temple was a _Labyrinth_.

"Annabeth made this to honor my greatest child ever, Daedalus," she said conversationally, "Not as big as that one, of course, nor as evil. _That_ labyrinth was meant to trap people. This one, however, has clues to guide you inside. I won't like people coming to worship me to be lost forever, would I?"

Percy nodded mutely, still flabbergasted.

"However," she said, smiling evilly "Seeing as you are not here to worship me, I might just let in a few monsters, you know, just for fun."

That shook out Percy. Any Goddess, who set monsters for fun, wasn't a goddess and didn't deserve to be treated as such.

"You know," he said angrily, "for a goddess of _wisdom_, you aren't very wise."

So saying, Percy Jackson, the hero of Olympus, the son of Poseidon, plunged into the second labyrinth of his life.

The moment he entered, he noticed a comfortable bluish light coming from the walls which were decorated with pictures of owls and the names of Athena in different forms. Of course. As she said, can't go on scaring away people who visited her, could she? Taking comfort, he forged ahead, with Riptide in his hand.

Before long, he started seeing a bright light ahead. Walking cautiously, he discovered himself standing on a black and white floor. A very _familiar_ black and white floor.

"No _way_!" he gasped. "I've to play _chess_ to go forward?"

Right on queue, 16 huge white pieces came in front of him, and 16 huge black pieces appeared on the other side. Percy groaned. Chess was never one of his favorite games. Something about having dyslexia and ADHD always made it hard to concentrate on a single game for more than two minutes. Thinking about it, he remembered that chess was never one of Annabeth's favorite games too. Sure, she liked the game, but disliked sitting at one place for too long. All demigods were too impatient and impulsive.

As he saw the pieces in front of him, he noticed that the black pieces had already started moving in front of him.

"Hey!" he shouted, "I've not yet moved!" Then he frowned. The black king had just moved two places ahead in one go.

That meant, oh Gods-

"Err… pawn at the right end, move… _three_ steps forward." He ordered. Sure enough, the pawn at the corner moved three steps ahead.

That settled it. There were no rules. It was simply a game of battle strategy. All he had to do was to win the game in whatever way possible, and get to the door at the other end.

Percy quickly climbed the bishop piece and started giving orders. His plan was simple. Use the king as a distraction and sacrifice him, and in the mean time, slip away. Even though it was animated chess, the king was always important in _any_ battle. Athena had misjudged him. Had it been any of her _own_ children, no doubt they would have tried to defeat the black. But he was not here to win the battle. He simply had to get to the door at the back.

Before long, after chopping his way through the two pawns standing guard at the door, he was back in the blue lighted corridors, hurrying away. He remembered how time was faster in the labyrinth, and started running.

After running for a half a mile, he came to a standstill. In front of him, were five different passages, each with a locked door and a padlock. And right in front of the third passage was a notebook and a pen. The moment he picked them up, a chair and a table came up in front of him.

"Well, that's polite!" so saying, he settled himself comfortably and looked at the notebook.

"_**From which seven letter word, if you take out 4 letters, you have only one remaining?"**_

He could find nothing else even when he scanned the whole notebook. Seven letter word… remove four and only one left? Percy felt angry. 7-4=3 for Hades' sake! Someone should go and tell her it's not possible. Someone should go and… Hey, wait a second. Someone should… What the-? Percy looked at the book closely. "…have _one_ left?" Not one _letter_ left.

Hands trembling, he wrote in the book- _someone_.

_Someone_ was a seven letter word, and take out _some_, that is, four letters, and you get _one_.

The moment he finished writing, the rightmost door burst open, and a cool breeze started coming. Shivering, he started down the passage. He had hardly walked a few meters, when suddenly he found himself in a room in which a computer stood blinking on a table at the corner. He glanced at it curiously, and then continued to the other doorway of the room.

The moment he came out of the computer room, he gasped. He was in a beautiful garden, with a pool in the middle, and beside the lake was a huge tree. In its shade, there was a bench, and right on the bench, there was a book.

Percy felt elated. Logically speaking too, he found the placement of the book perfect. If _he_ had been reading a book, then he too would have chosen that spot, nice and shady. With a spring in his step, he walked forward. But at that moment, all Hades broke loose.

He heard a loud growling sound, and he pulled back his hand fast. Just in time too. Te place where there was a dog now stood an enormous hellhound, with hair bristling all over its body.

He tried to take out his sword, but the hellhound was too fast for him. It knocked him back, straight into the… lake. Percy smirked.

"Big mistake, boy," he snarled, he charged it. But the hellhound was ready. Sidestepping, it tried to bite off Percy's hands, but he willed the water to make him rise up. Then pointing riptide towards the hellhound, he pierced it. It turned over, and feebly raked Percy with its claws, and died.

Shaking off the blood from his hands and t-shirt, he approached the book again, this time warily. Just before touching the book, he stopped.

Something was bothering him. He had had a similar experience in Daedalus' labyrinth too. Annabeth kept on saying that the master architect would be located at the most ancient part of the labyrinth, but when they found him, he was actually surrounded with fully modern equipments.

What if Athena had modernized herself too?

What if… oh gods…

What if her book were an… _e-book_?

Turning back, Percy sprinted back towards the computer room. The labyrinth, thankfully, had not shifted itself, and he came back to the room. He shuddered to think of the time he had wasted battling the hellhound.

On seeing the monitor, he groaned. There were at least 20 e-books. Which one to choose?

He tried to remember Athena's words.

"I want you to go to my temple; the one Annabeth made, and get my book."… She had said the words "my book" funnily, almost as if they were one word.

_My book…my book…my book…__mybook_.

Oh Zeus…

Hands shaking, he clicked on the e-book titled "mybook".

Immediately, a message came on the screen, saying "Congratulations! You have completed your first task!"

Suddenly, Percy felt a force pulling him back from the labyrinth, and almost fainted.

"Next time on Annabeth's birthday," he thought blearily, "I'll simply buy her a bouquet of roses."


	4. Chapter 4

_**This is the longest chapter I've written till now. I've decided to split the second task into two parts. **_

_**An unexpected character has been introduced here!**_

_**Thanks to people reviewing me! (Not many, I know, but thanks to you all anyway!)**_

_**So, enjoy!**_

On feeling someone sprinkling water on him, Percy opened his eyes. He found himself lying on his back in front of the park bench, where Lady Athena was sitting. A naiad was holding a jar of water and was looking concerned.

"Aargh!" Percy exclaimed as he tried to sit up. He felt sore all over his back. He glared at Athena.

"Sorry", she said unrepentantly, "Seems I pulled you out too fast."

Percy grumbled something under his breath.

"Your ratings were good in Hephaestus T.V.", she said conversationally.

"I- _what_?", Percy spluttered indignantly. "You guys were _watching _me? Am I a plaything to you all?" He felt angry.

"Not my idea." The Goddess raised her hands up, "It was Aphrodite. According to her, these tasks which I'm giving you to test your worthiness could somehow be seen as a great quest to get your lover back." She sighed in disgust. "You and Annabeth are apparently the most exciting pair since Helen and Troy. For this reason, she has also been adding personal touches to the second task."

Percy paled. Goddess of love taking a special interest was not good at all. It always lead to death and heartbreak.

"I must confess," She said, "that I lost some money in betting. I never expected you to figure out "mybook".

Percy balled his fists. "You tricked me. It was an _e-book_. You said it was a book. You lied."

"Don't dare impugn my honor, boy!" Athena shouted. Then she said, "I never said it was a book. I always said that you have to find "mybook". It was a name of an e-book, so there!"

Before Percy could retort, she interrupted "Do you want to know the second task or not? You have only 6 hours remaining!" He nodded angrily.

"For your second task," she said, "you have to find…the legendary _bow of Orion_!" she finished dramatically.

Percy gasped, "You mean the bow of the _sea_?"

"Exactly!", Athena confirmed, eyes gleaming, "That bow has been borne by many sons of Poseidon, the latest being Orion. When he died, his lover Lady Artemis took his bow for safekeeping, so as to give it to the next worthy candidate. In order to show her appreciation for saving her from Atlas and defeating Kronos, she has decided to give the bow to you."

Percy was stunned. The bow of Orion was one of the best weapons ever made in the history. It had the element of water in it, so that wielding it would elevate any son of Poseidon to the skills of Gods themselves. Nowadays, the story was dismissed as myth. However, it seemed the bow existed!

Percy struggled to control his breathing, "Okay, where will I find it?"

The Goddess waved her hands. Within a second, they were surrounded by huge trees extending endlessly in all directions.

"You will find the bow _here_," she said, pointing her hand towards the forest. Percy nodded, it made perfect sense. If it was Lady Artemis who was giving the gift, then she would want him to _hunt_ the bow. The time was sunset, which meant enough darkness for hiding, and also enough light to see the prey. Perfect for hunting.

"Also, you'll find the second part of the riddle here, engraved on a big golden board beside the bow."

Percy started, "I'm sorry, what riddle?"

"Didn't you read the e-book?" Athena demanded. When Percy shook his head, she sighed and said, "Ah well, it contained a part of the riddle for the third task. You can read it when you come back. Don't forget to bring the second part of the riddle back with you. And whatever you do, don't forget that Aphrodite is going to play with you. Guard your heart!" so saying, the Goddess disappeared.

The silence was almost deafening. This, Percy decided, was not a normal forest. Had it been normal, there would have been the sounds of birds chirping, animals in the bushes. _This_, was a forest of monsters.

He trudged along silently in the forest, searching for a bow or a flash of gold. He started feeling frustrated. Where would he find a bow in a huge forest?

"Calm down," said a voice in his mind. "the water is inside you Percy, so let the bow call you,". Obeying, Percy relaxed. Immediately, he felt a tugging at the back of his mind, which pointed towards…east. Directing himself in that direction, he started moving in an almost trans-like state when he heard it.

_Click click_.

Percy froze. And then slowly, turned around. There, clicking its pincers, were two pit scorpions.

"All right, buddy," Percy said slowly. "Let's settle this diplomatically."

Suddenly from behind he again heard the clicking sound. To his horror, he saw four more scorpions behind him. Two remained behind him, while the other two went to his right and left respectively. Percy was now effectively surrounded.

Percy knew he was defeated. There was no way he could defend himself against 6 scorpions together. He swung his sword at the first when it jumped at him, and it disintegrated. But the scorpions weren't waiting for chances. Even as he swung his sword at two more, he knew that the rest were attacking from behind.

Suddenly, a body slammed him from behind, just saving him from the back scorpions. Startled, he quickly killed the two scorpions in front of him, and then hit his sword backward. Another sword, golden in color, stopped his attack. Percy quickly jumped to the front to gain more space to swing, then turned back to face the attacker.

The new person killed off the remaining scorpions with apparent ease, and the turned back. He noticed that the person was wearing a mask, but long hair tumbled from it. _A female._ As he rushed at her, she backed off to a tree, and started defending herself easily. She then placed her foot at the trunk of the tree for support, and launched herself at him. As they tumbled to the ground, Percy knew he was hopelessly outmatched. She was _playing_ with him. He could smell her moonlace perfume-

Wait a moment, moonlace?

"It can't be!" he shouted, and in a rush of energy, pushed the woman away and ripped off her mask.

It was Calypso.


	5. Chapter 5

_**This one required some serious bit of imagination!**_

_**So, please review guys!**_

_**I wanted to add more challenges here, but that made the second task too long, and would have taken another chapter.**_

_**So, here is the second task, and hope you enjoy!**_

_**All characters belong to Rick Riordan!**_

_**Chapter 5**_

"You've become well, hero," said Calypso, smiling.

"But…what are you _doing_ here?" asked Percy, amazed.

Calypso rolled her eyes, and said, "Maybe, if you release me, I'll tell…?"

Percy realized to his embarrassment that he was still holding her close to him. Face burning, he quickly released her. But she smiled reassuringly and said, "Aphrodite contacted me, and told me to help you. She said you'll explain…?"

Percy gritted his teeth. He knew _exactly_ why she was here: to test his love for Annabeth. It seemed Aphrodite was hell bent on making his life miserable. In short sentences, he explained about the tasks and what had happened till now. He concluded by voicing his concerns about the role she had to play in the second task.

Calypso sighed. "Perseus Jackson," she said, "Because of you, I've been freed from the island where I was imprisoned. You're the hero of Olympus and an idol for all the demigods. How can I _not_ love you? However," her tone hardened, "I refuse to be used as a tool to make your love life miserable. It would indeed be a poor repayment for what you've done for me."

Percy nodded gratefully. He could already feel dratted pangs of attraction towards her, but maybe if they both tried, they could escape unscathed.

"All right then," he said, pointing towards the forest, "let's get on with it!"

He started walking towards east, but saw that Calypso was bending down with a seed in her hand. She dug it in the mud, and softly spoke some words over it.

In front of Percy's amazed eyes, a plant began to grow and blossom. It stopped at knee height. It had a silver bark with golden spirals running all over it. It had a flower at the top like that of a sunflower, and its petals seemed to shine with a light.

"_This_ is a pointer." Calypso said, gently touching its petals.

"Sorry?"

"A pointer. A gold pointer, to be precise."

"So, this uh…plant, points towards _gold_? As in, the golden board?" Percy asked disbelievingly.

"Exactly!" explained Calypso, "and apparently, you are going in the wrong direction." The flower at the top was facing west, exact opposite of where Percy had been headed.

Percy protested, "But, I can feel the water there. Besides, how can you trust a…plant?"

"A decoy." Declared Calypso flatly, "It must be a pond or something, specifically placed there in order to confuse you and defeat you. As for the plant, have you not heard of a sunflower? It points to the sun. The moonflower? It points to the moon. Similarly this, points to the _gold_."

On seeing Percy's disbelieving face, she sighed impatiently and said, "All right then, can you feel anything…different? A…purer form of water or something?"

Percy frowned, "It seems normal to me."

"Then It's not Orion's bow." She said confidently. "Believe me, I've seen Orion's bow, and when you feel it, you'll feel…complete."

"I've all my body parts with me, thank you."

"This is no joking matter," she scolded, "We're running out of time, so I suggest that we move fast."

On the way, Calypso recounted to him all that had happened to her since she had been freed. She explained that she had now joined a nationwide wildlife preservation community and was trying to convince people to grow more gardens. Percy chuckled when she told him about her experience about the first time she went shopping in a shopping complex. He couldn't believe how easy it was to talk to her and how _hard_ it was not to fall for her. They had just started to talk about school life, when they met the next obstacle.

In front of them, spread a huge body of water, like a sea, or an ocean. And near them, was a blue colored boat, complete with oars.

"This is not a normal sea/ocean." Calypso looked worried.

"I gathered as much."

"No…if it's what I think…Percy, tell me, can you control the water here?"

Percy tried. To his panic, he discovered that he could not control the water at all. Experimentally, he tried touching the water with his toe. It remained wet.

"I can't do anything!" Percy said desperately.

"I thought so." Calypso said, "This, my dear, is the water of illusion."

"Water of illusion?"

"Yes, the moment we come in sight of this water, a mental barrier is created in our minds. We will be able to see this only as its creator wants us to see."

"I don't understand."

"Here, for example, Athena created this lake. She wants you trapped, so we won't be able to see the shore at all. We'll be sailing here forever, and the monsters of our mind and the real monsters will keep on attacking us. This will keep on happening until we break the mental barrier.

"Great," said Percy sarcastically, "so we are supposed to break some mental barrier or we are trapped here forever?"

"Forever, or till Athena wants us to."

"Forever then."

Silently, they boarded the boat. The lake was utterly still, and Percy could sense no life at all-or maybe that was just an illusion too.

"Focus", he told himself. He concentrated on trying to control the water. He knew that the moment he could start controlling the water, it would mean that he was back in control of himself.

A few minutes passed that way, with both of them straining themselves mentally.

"No monsters till now, good right?" Percy asked, just to break the silence.

"Don't jinx it." Calypso warned. The moment she said that, however, emerged a sea monster bigger than any that Percy had seen till now. It was as huge as a 20 storied building and had black scales all over it. Its intelligent eyes were analyzing them, as if to decide the best way to eat them.

"Percy!" Calypso screamed, who was taking out her sword, "Do something! We can't defeat it! It belongs to the sea, talk to it!"

Percy immediately concentrated. Unfortunately, calypso's scream seemed to have shaken the monster. It dived.

"NO!" Taking the ore, both he and Calypso rowed desperately towards the left, and thankfully, the beast's head just missed them. However, the resulting splashes made their boat capsize, leaving both of them stranded in water.

"Percy!" urged Calypso, "think! Is this a territorial animal or something, so that once we swim out of its area, it'll stop attacking?"

"No!" Percy replied. It was true. Territorial animals always tried to _remove _you first. They never tried to kill as directly as this one was doing.

Unfortunately, by the time he had come to this conclusion, the monster came up again, and this time, with true aim, pushed both of them inside the water. For the first time in his life, he felt the sensation of drowning. He closed his eyes.

Then suddenly, a hand grabbed him. _Annabeth_? He neither knew nor cared, but he started remembering all the happy times with her and in the water.

_The underwater kiss…his father's grand palace…moments by the beach…_

To his amazement, he found that he was now able to control the currents about him. He could now breathe underwater!

"OK buddy!" Percy growled, "You've gone too far now!"

He formed an underwater bubble around Calypso, and then shot upwards from water like a cork form a bottle, riptide pointing straight upwards.

Later on, he never really remembered what had happened. He remembered a great noise, a falling sensation, Calypso screaming, and incredibly, falling on…_land_.

_We've reached the shore_.

He passed out.

When Percy came to his senses, he found to his surprise that he was not feeling sick at all. To the contrary, he was feeling great…healthy!

"How are you feeling?" Asked Calypso, sitting beside him.

"I don't know…more like…_complete_."

Calypso smiled triumphantly at him, "You're feeling the effects of the bow."

"The bow?"

She pointed behind him. Percy turned behind and drew a sharp breath.

He instinctively knew it was the bow of Orion…the bow of the _sea._ It was calling to him, singing to him. It seemed to be made of water, but when he touched it, he found it solid enough.

"Go on." Said Calypso, "Take an aim and shoot it."

Percy took an arrow from the quiver lying beside him, and shot. True to his aim, the far off apple to which he was aiming fell down. He looked in wonder at the bow. He felt more powerful than he had ever felt in his entire life.

Then he looked at Calypso and said, "Thank you! I couldn't have done it without you."

She just smiled a charming smile. "Don't you think you are forgetting something?"

"Forgetting what?"

She chuckled, "You're a true seaweed brain. The _riddle_, idiot!"

"Oh right!" He then turned his attention to the unnoticed golden board standing beside the quiver. On it was written:

_Help me however, and you'll find,_

_Gratitude from the king, who hates you,_

_Show me kindness, son of sea god,_

_And you'll find a cousin new!_

He didn't understand a thing. But then, he comforted himself, this is the second part of the riddle. Once he read the first part, then he would understand. That could wait.

For now, it was time to return.


	6. Chapter 6

**Seems I hit a writer's block… **

**However, I could somehow complete the third task (much relieved!). Like the second task, I have split the third task into two parts. Unfortunately, this part does not have any action. This will be a build up for the 2nd part. But I promise you, the 2nd part does have action! **

**So, enjoy!**

**Chapter 6**

The first thing Percy noticed when he returned was that Calypso was no where to be seen.

"Where is she? Where is Calypso?" he spun around and then realized that he was back at the park bench from where all his adventures had started, and as usual, sitting on the park bench was Lady Athena.

He rounded on her, "Where is Calypso?" He shouted.

"She has gone back to where she was before we contacted her." She said coolly.

Percy was tempted to shout more at her, but then figured that Athena would probably take that as a sign of affection for Calypso. She might even see it fit to break his relationship with Annabeth, regardless of any number of tasks he completed. But at that moment, he mentally vowed to visit Calypso again, some day and maybe she and Annabeth could become friends, maybe…

"You did well, Perseus," the Goddess said, interrupting his thoughts.

"Excuse me?"

She pinched her nose with her fingers, and said, "Don't make me say it again, but you did well, Perseus. The way you were able to break my mental barrier was extraordinary, and it proved that you really loved my daughter, because only true love could break the barrier of the water of illusion."

Percy gaped at her. It was the first time that _Athena_ had praised him. _End of the world, maybe_?

"And now, I think you are eligible to read the whole riddle together." She said, handing to him the golden board that he had brought back, where now both the parts of the riddle was engraved. But Percy suddenly realized that the bow of the _sea_ was no where to be seen.

"Where is the bow?" he asked Athena, panicked.

"The bow is back in your cabin in the camp, Percy. You still have to explore the full powers of the bow, and it might cause some unforeseen problems in your next task, like err… causing floods and hurricane.

Percy stared at her, "The bow's _that_ powerful?"

"Yes it is. Rest assured that it shall be safe till you get back. Now, please carry on with the riddle. You now have only 3 hours left for the final task."

Perseus Jackson, the son of Poseidon and the hero of Olympus, finally read the whole riddle together:

_Look for me in the new world,_

_In games and time I'm trapped,_

_Try to rescue me, but be warned,_

_Annoy me and you'll be zapped._

_Help me however, and you'll find,_

_Gratitude from the King, who hates you,_

_Show kindness, son of sea god,_

_And you'll find a cousin new._

Percy blinked and read again.

Okay…

"So, I have to find a creature, who err… apparently is trapped in games and time, and when I rescue it, it will point to a…cousin of mine. And it will zap me if I annoy it." He looked up at Athena, "One of Zeus's pets?"

She smirked, "Maybe. For all you know, it may be a giant electric eel from your father's domain."

"An electric eel won't try to zap me," Percy grumbled.

"Alright then," Percy thought, "_New world_… no idea… _games and time_… some video game? _Gratitude from the king who hates me_... which king hates me? For God's sake are there any kings on earth any more?" For some reason, Percy's eyes kept on coming back to the 2nd line: _In games and time I'm trapped_. "Where are games? Las Vegas? Casinos?" Suddenly he sat up straighter, "Holy Zeus, that's the _Lotus Casino_!"

He still had doubts about the "new world" thing… after all; Lotus Casino was on earth itself, not on some _new _world, but he stood up and resolutely said to Athena, "Get me to Lotus Casino, Las Vegas!"

The Goddess' eyes twinkled, and snapped her fingers. A moment later, Percy's knees buckled, and his eyes swam.

"I bet she does that on purpose," Percy grumbled, as he tried to refocus himself. When he was again in control of himself, he realized that he was now standing in front of the Lotus Casino.

Before entering, Percy set the alarm in his digital watch for 1hour. He remembered what Annabeth had explained to him and Nico, "That Casino affects your brain and your senses, but cannot affect the actual _passage_ of time. So, if you put an hour long alarm on your watch and enter the Casino, you'll find that it rings after an hour alright, but it will _seem_ to you as if it has been only a few seconds."

This time, as Percy entered, he was determined to stay in his senses. He simply could not afford to stay there for mare than 3hours. If he did lose track of time, then he might as well stay there for the rest of his existence.

Now he focused on the more practical problem on his hands: How would he find this… creature? The casino was huge, with fountains in regular intervals, hundreds of people milling about, excitedly counting money, getting (and loosing) cars and full of extravaganza. He could see Casino cards lying about (he shuddered), sumptuous food on the tables, cell phones lying on the plush sofas-

Wait a second. Cell phones?

Percy grinned. He now knew exactly how to attract this electrifying monster. He took a cell phone and dialed a random number. He waited till two rings, and then cut off the phone. The receiving end did not pick up, but that did not matter: he knew that the signal had been sent. Now _any_ mythological creature could find him. If there _were_ a monster/creature in the casino, then it should be running towards him right now.

In order to gain energy and get some protection in case of a battle, Percy moved towards the nearest fountain towards his right. As he moved, he suddenly heard the sound of a child crying.

He looked around, and found that it was a little girl crying. Percy immediately felt sorry. How terrible it would be if one were trapped years after years in the casino, and then suddenly realize that your life is over?

He walked over to her, and sat down by her side, "Why are you crying?" he asked kindly.

"That freak boy's been giving me electric shocks." She sniffled, pointing and averting her eyes.

Percy immediately stiffened, "Which boy? Where?" he asked urgently.

"That boy, over there. By the food tables." She said, pointing. "Be careful," she added, looking at Percy with her beautiful eyes, and perfectly made up face. He noticed that she had a small mirror in her hands.

"I…I will." He stammered, and started walking towards the food tables. He was half way towards the tables when it hit him.

Beautiful eyes…face with make up…mirror…

_Aphrodite? _

He spun around, but the girl had disappeared. But Percy now started feeling uncomfortable. When Gods interrupted with quests, it usually meant something bad was going to happen. But this time, Aphrodite had directly pointed to the goal of his mission. It showed him two things: one that the Gods were watching his every move, and two that _Aphrodite_ at least wanted to help her. He tried to take comfort in this as he warily turned around and walked towards the boy to whom she had pointed.

He looked like a normal boy, not the monster he was expecting. Sandy haired, and face with a liberal amount of freckles, he looked like any normal kid out in the streets. Percy took his time analyzing the boy, seeing if he had any secret weapons or not. Satisfied that he had no threat from weapons at least, he went and sat beside the boy.

"Food?" he asked the boy politely, pointing in front of them.

He shook his head.

"Come on; let me get you a… coke at least."

"No thanks."

"My treat."

The boy looked up from the table and glared at Percy. This was exactly what Percy was hoping for. The eyes often told the true nature of a person's nature and type.

But what he saw in the eyes shocked him.

Electric blue eyes.

Exactly like Thalia.

_Exactly like Zeus_.

Oh Gods… this kid was a son of _Zeus_!

He immediately understood the whole riddle. He had to rescue Zeus' son, not some electrifying monster. Of course any Zeus' kid would zap anyone who annoyed them: Thalia constantly did so to Percy. And of course, Zeus, the _king_ of gods, would show gratitude if he helped his kid.

As revelations started coming to Percy, he realized to his horror that he had called from a cell phone to send signals to monsters to come to him. And two demigods gave off a lot more aura than just one…

Even as he reached to his conclusion, he heard a glass shatter behind him. People started screaming.

The monsters had arrived.


	7. Chapter 7

**Sorry guys for the late update… the modem broke and hence no internet connection for past 5 days.**

**Happy to say, I'm back!**

**This one has lots of action!** **Enjoy!**

_**Chapter 7**_

The first thought that came to Percy's head when he looked back was "_Duck!_"

Pushing the boy's head down, he did the same- not a moment too soon, because the place where their heads had been were now embedded with a dozen thorns.

_Thorns?_

Holy Poseidon_…_

_A manticore._

"We meet again, Perseus Jackson," came the familiar voice of Dr. Thorn, "and this time, there are no hunters to save you." Looking back, he could see the face of the manticore on its lion body, and its tail bristling with spikes.

Percy felt anger growing inside him. It was just a few months from the last titan war, and the monsters had _already_ come back?

"No need for hunters to kill you, cactus man,"

Thorn's nostrils flared as he shouted, "Why you-", then he stiffened, "I smell… something different about you, sea spawn."

"Oh dear… has the ickle beastie caught a cold?" Percy taunted, but inside he was growing cold. Monsters like Thorn could easily sniff out a demigod, _especially_ a son of the big three. He desperately tried to cover up the boy's scent with his own.

"I smell…air. The power of the sky." Thorn clicked his fingers, grinning, "Why, you have a demigod son of Zeus!" His eyes drifted down to the cowering boy beside Percy. "Hello, Godling. I believe we have not met." He held out his hand formally, as if they were in a meeting. "I am Dr. Thorn, a manticore, one of the most dangerous monsters alive!"

"That's because all others have died," Percy retorted.

Thorn gave Percy a look of hatred, "I'm not speaking to you, spawn. We'll have plenty of chat later. But for now…" He threw a thorn from his tail, which embedded itself next to the boy, who flinched. "I believe I just introduced myself. It would be terribly rude if I am forced to eat you without knowing your name." He held out his hand.

To Percy's horror, he saw the boy's hand stretching towards Thorn. Just before he tried to summon water to blast away Thorn, the boy spoke, "I'm Jack. How are you?"

So saying he extended his hand to touch Thorn.

At that moment all Hades broke loose.

A blue light emerged from Jack's hands, and Thorn fell down, shocked- literally. Percy knew from personal experience that Thorn's hand would probably be numb for sometime, and decided to make the best of it.

He made a punching motion with his hand. Mimicking his actions, the water took the shape of a fist, and punched the manticore on the stomach. Thorn went flying backward, crashing onto the tables and breaking the glass. Several people screamed. Only then, did Percy notice that the people had formed a circle around them, listening to their conversation as if they were the prime time show on T.V.

"Why didn't they go away?" raged Percy, before deciding that he needed to get both Jack and himself to some place safe, so that the people do not get hurt. The water around them obeyed his thoughts, and splashed them through to the nearest pool in the corner, where thankfully, there were neither the people nor the monsters.

"Jesus!" Jack spluttered, coughing out water from his mouth.

"It's not Jesus, kid, it's Zeus!"

Percy took Jack's hand, and was pulling him towards the nearest exit, when he heard the noise of guns.

BANG! BANG!

He froze and looked around carefully. Green clothed men were firing bullets all around. On their chest were badges, which spelt "_Security_". Percy was feeling relieved that the security had come to rescue them when he felt a bullet grazing his leg.

Jack flinched.

He realized that the security were not here to kill Thorn, instead, they were here to kill the _demigods_.

He started pulling along Jack to take cover behind a table, but apparently, Jack had had enough.

"NO!" he screamed, and then shocked Percy away. He started running away from Percy as fast he could. Percy cursed and tried to follow him, when he felt a sharp pain in his leg.

A thorn.

He immediately pulled it out of his leg, hoping that the poison had not spread. But his hopes were immediately dashed a second later, when a burning sensation started in his leg, and started to spread all over his body.

"Water…" He willed his element to heal him, but it was slow healing. Apparently, the poison was strong enough to even resist healing from water. He tried to see through the haze blocking his eyes.

The casino had become a disaster. It looked a scene straight from a horror movie. Blood was spilled everywhere, ad people were cowering under cover. And Jack had run… straight into the clutches of the security guards. It looked like he was putting up a fight, but one untrained demigod was nothing compared to the monster trained mortals. And savoring the view was Dr. Thorn.

"I have to save him somehow," Percy thought desperately. His eyes then fell on a motorbike that was still roving on a platform.

Ok. Time for desperate ideas.

He stumbled to his feet, the pain in his leg almost making him crippled. He somehow walked up to the bike. Cowering beside the bike was a female model who had apparently been showing off the bike's features.

"Keys?" he asked the model.

She pointed a shaking hand at the stand beside the bike.

Percy put the keys in the starter and kicked the lever. He then pointed the bike towards Thorn, who thankfully hadn't noticed him yet. It seemed like he was bent on torturing Jack.

VROOOOOM!

Thorn had only time to say "What the-" when he was sent flying due to the force of the impact.

"Come on!" Percy yelled to Jack, who wasted no time and sat down behind him, holding his waist for dear life.

"All right!" He performed a 360 on his bike, which probably would have given his mom a heart attack, and then burst through the windows.

CRASH!

"Someone should be really filming this," he thought, as his teeth rattled from the impact on landing on ground. He immediately gunned his way towards the traffic in front of him. Hopefully, Thorn won't follow him when he was with mortals.

BANG BANG!

Percy cursed. He had totally forgotten the mortal guards. He raced his way through the traffic, between the cars and trucks, but the guards kept following him. He could here the guns firing, and could almost feel the bullets coming their way. Any second now, they would be dead-

"NO!" Jack yelled, and a spark of electricity emerged through his fingers, incinerating the bullets just before it could hit them.

"Thanks Jack."

"Don't mention it."

By now, they had come to a free stretch of road. He immediately increased the speed, and he could hear the guards falling behind. Percy sighed in relief. Just then he heard a roaring sound up in the sky.

Looking up, he saw Thorn on a helicopter.

"No way! How can monsters be so…modern!" he cried. Then Thorn's voice boomed.

"Perseus Jackson! You cannot evade me this time! The moment I throw this grenade, you will blow up!"

_Grenade? _

He looked at Jack, and saw that his eyes were wide with fear. He tried to think of something that would save them. To buy some time, he yelled, "Jack! Pray to your father!"

"Excuse me?"

"Pray to your father to kill the enemies!"

"I don't have a father." Jack returned stiffly.

"JUST DO IT!" Percy roared, as he swerved to avoid the grenade. Behind him he could hear Jack murmuring a plea to his father.

For a second, nothing happened. Then-

BOOM!

The whole sky lit up with a flash of lightning. For a moment, it was as light as day. Then the lightning receded, and when he saw upwards, he saw a sky free of any helicopters.

"Thank you, uncle," Percy called out gratefully, as thunder boomed. He looked behind at Jack, who was looking shocked. "Yeah, that was your father!"

Then he realized that Jack wasn't shocked due to the lightning. He was clutching his stomach, and was looking pale. Percy looked down and was sickened at what he saw. Protruding from Jack's stomach was a piece of metal, probably from the helicopter blast, and it was covered in blood.

"Oh no, oh no…You just wait… You'll be all right." Percy muttered in panic, as he tried to look for the nearest hospital.

But the bleeding was increasing continuously, until at last, Percy was forced to stop. He cut a piece of cloth and tied it tightly across Jack's stomach, in the hope that it would staunch the bleeding.

Just then, he saw a flash of moonlight appear a little distance away from him and the sound of a hunting horn.

Percy grimly looked down at Jack, "Come on, your sister will help you."


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry again for the late update!**

**I had to loan my computer to dad for some official business as his laptop had broken down.**

**This was originally intended to be the last chapter, but then I decided to finish off the remaining third task, and focus the whole next chapter on the gift. So this one is short.**

**Enjoy! **

"Oh my God!" Thalia screamed, the moment Percy approached the hunter camp. "Whom have you killed this time, seaweed brain?"

Percy stopped, mouth open, "Excuse me? I just saved him!"

"I knew it! Send Percy for a rescue mission and he messes it all up. I told her-"

"Calm down, lieutenant!" interrupted Goddess Artemis beside her, now in her 12 year old form. She then smiled at Percy and said," Welcome, Perseus Jackson, to our camp once again."

Percy bowed, "My lady." He then motioned towards Jack in his arms, "My lady, this boy is-"

Beep Beep Beep!

Thalia frowned, "What is that?"

Percy didn't answer. He could not. He knew perfectly well what the sound was. The 3 hour alarm that he had kept on his watch had finally rung. The time was over. He felt as if his world were being torn apart.

Percy knew that he should go now. His job, after all, had been finished. He had successfully taken out Jack from the Lotus Casino. The hunters were here. They would heal Jack.

Yet. A part of him intuitively knew that if he went away from here, Jack may never heal. Athena had purposefully given him a choice… a choice between saving a life, and going after Annabeth after completing the three tasks.

Percy blinked back his tears. After all that he had accomplished, Athena still found it amusing to tear apart his conscience with two fundamental questions.

Jack or Annabeth?

"Think!" Percy's mind told him. "Think! If Annabeth were here, what would she want?"

Percy sighed. He knew that she would want him to save Jack. She would want him to do… the right thing. He looked at Jack. He looked like a 10 year old. Percy wondered how he had avoided Hades' monsters, even though Thalia hadn't. Probably his scent hadn't grown as that of Thalia's, or any kid of the big three for that matter. He thought whether he himself had looked like that at his age. Then his mind was made up.

"All right! I'll do the right thing. I'll save Jack. He said loudly, so that any Gods who were listening (and he had a nagging suspicion that they were all listening) could hear properly.

"Percy?" Thalia's voice broke into his thoughts. "You all right?"

"I-yes." Percy croaked.

"You were standing there, talking to yourself." Thalia looked unconvinced.

Percy cleared his throat. "I'm fine," He held out Jack. "Heal him."

She came closer to him. Then she stopped, confused. "Heal what?"

"Him."

"No-what? I mean, where is he hurt?"

"Right there-" Percy stopped. Where there had been a fatal wound, there was now no wound or blood at all. He was healed.

"That's odd." Thalia commented. "I could have sworn that there had been blood on his shirt in the stomach area."

Percy barely heard her. He felt stunned as realisation set over him. The healing was Athena's, no doubt. This was the real test. Not the fighting and monsters. Jack had been purposefully injured by Athena- to see what he would choose. And Percy had no doubt that he had chosen the correct option.

At that moment, Percy had no idea what he was feeling. There was relief, at completing the tasks. Happiness, at getting Annabeth with him forever, but also anger- at being tricked yet again by Athena, and that too in such a fashion. This time, the goddess had really crossed the limit. She had actually tried to kill a friend. He resolved to have a word with her once he returned. As for now…well, he should enjoy the moment.

He turned to Thalia and grinned. She looked shocked.

"What?" She motioned to Jack. "What about him?"

"Oh forget him. He is healed!" He shouted exuberantly.

"Healed! How?"

"I said, forget about it!" Percy paused. "How do you feel… about a challenge, Thalia?"

She looked wary at once. "What challenge?"

He grinned. "A shooting contest!"

"Excuse me?"

" You heard me. A shooting contest. You and me. Within a weak. I bet 5 galleons that I would be able to beat you. On?"

Thalia looked stunned. Then she turned to Lady Artemis. "Is he all right?"

"I can sense nothing wrong with him, Thalia."

"Oh in that case… of course yes! Maybe you have taken some help or something, but not even Apollo's kids can beat me! Who are you, seaweed brain?"

"Oh I took help all right. Lady Artemis," he bowed to her, "helped me. You are so dead!"

Percy started to feel the familiar tug that took him back to Olympus. He grinned at Thalia, "Remember it!"

"Perseus Jackson!," Artemis interrupted. He could see a smile playing with her lips. She said loudly, so that Thalia could hear it, "Try not to humiliate her…much."

Percy smiled at her, and then laughed at Thalia's stony expression. Then he felt the familiar tug at his back, and every thing blacked out.

**So then, this one's finished. The next one is the last chapter! Cheers!**

**As for the gift, let me give you people a clue. Percy won't give the gift, he's going to show the gift to Annabeth! It's her heart's desire, only Percy knows it, and what's more, the clue for the gift is present in one of the first three books! **

**Go on, review, and try to guess the gift! I'll mention the name that got the correct one!**


	9. Chapter 9

**All right, this is the last chapter…finally!**

**Thank You to all of you guys who have been with me in this fantastic journey of my first fan fiction! I'll soon be back with another story, so look out**!

_**Chapter- Last**_.

Annabeth was nervous- and _very_ angry.

She was angry because her boyfriend had abandoned her on her _birthday_, she was _very_ angry because of all the people Percy could go to, he had chosen her _mother, Athena_, who could blast him without a moment's thought, and she was _insanely_ angry because he had actually gone and _done_ the three tasks of Athena.

Percy was in huge trouble.

She remembered her reaction when she first heard about all that had happened. First of all, during the afternoon, her mother had IM'd her up and had instructed to wear her best party dress and to be ready by 8. Now under normal circumstances she would have been overjoyed, but today she was worrying about Percy. And when her mother had explained to her what was happening, she had nearly yelled at her.

Now news had trickled in that Percy was safe and sound, and was waiting for her at Olympus. Just _what_ they were planning, Annabeth could not even imagine, and she simply _hated_ not to know anything.

"Well, I'll soon know now," she sighed, straightening her dress in the front, while waiting for the lift to reach the 600th floor. She contemplated what all she had heard about Percy's deeds. He had recovered the bow of Orion for _love_. Though there was something fishy there…it almost felt as if Percy was hiding something there. Also, he had rescued Zeus' kid. Zeus had been so filled with gratitude that he had immediately cleared Percy for all future flights. He had fought incredible dangers throughout the day… just for her. She silently vowed that she would never ever let that seaweed brain go out of sight ever again.

"600th floor", came the voice of a lady, and she stepped out.

She gasped.

In front of her was a scene…a scene from her dreams.

_Her father, mother and Percy…sitting together, smiling and beckoning her._

_Mount Olympus redesigned by her, in the background._

She immediately felt deja-vu. She knew where she had seen this scene before- at the sea of monsters, with the sirens. The only difference was instead of Luke, Percy was sitting, but that did not matter, because the replacement was actually for the better.

Annabeth started feeling tears coming from her eyes, but she did not try to stop them. She walked forward as if in a dream, half afraid that any time she would stumble and her dream would come at an end.

Then she felt a cool hand wrap around her waist, and heard the warm voice of Percy saying, "It's all right, dear. You are with me now. Stop crying, and enjoy the moment!"

Enjoy the moment! That was what seaweed brain had to say? She was cherishing the moment, living in it! This was her deepest desire come true! Her whole family, together, again!

"Happy birthday!", Percy said beside her.

She smiled a watery smile at him, and replied, "Thanks."

"So, you… like the gift?" Percy sounded nervous.

Annabeth almost laughed out loud. After all he had done for her, he asked her if he liked it?

She turned around and gave him a deep kiss- and then decided that she would have to get back at him a little for shocking her so much. Probably her ADHD brain telling her to move on.

She adopted her business like tone, "You know, the chairs could have been positioned somewhere over…there, and you could have designed the whole thing a little more… artfully."

Percy looked shocked, and then a look of comprehension dawned on him.

"Well, all of us can't be architects and designers, you know," he growled playfully.

Annabeth contently put down her head on his shoulders and took a deep breath.

She had a family.

She was home.

This was the _best_ birthday gift ever!

_**THE END**_


End file.
